Diamond dental burrs are made using a nickel electroplating process that co-deposits diamond and nickel onto a small dental burr core or mandrel and are made using natural diamond not synthetic diamond. The only known supplier of brazed diamond dental burrs also uses natural diamond as stated in their product specifications.
Electroplated diamond tools are not made using synthetic diamond, they are made using natural diamond, the FDA has only approved natural diamond for use in dental burrs.
There are several new materials entering the dental market for making crowns, caps, bridges and dentures. These materials are extremely difficult to grind as they are extremely hard materials, much harder than the conventional dental materials. These new materials like zirconia and Maicor™ will take over the market and will be very difficult to grind using dental burrs made using natural diamond. Natural diamond is very friable and the electroplated bonds are relatively weak. The modern dental materials are so hard that electroplated burrs with natural diamond will not be adequate for grinding and working of these materials. It is believe that it would take more than one electroplated diamond dental burr to grind a standard tooth containing the material.
Therefore, there is a need in the art to provide a robust dental burr that will withstand the rigors of grinding modern dental materials.